"Messi PR working overtime" - Fans take offence to tweet suggesting France star was robbed of Ballon d'Or in 2013 by Cristiano Ronaldo

Cristiano Ronaldo fans are in uproar after a tweet suggested that the Portuguese icon robbed Franck Ribery of the 2013 Ballon d'Or. One fan has even claimed that Lionel Messi's PR team are behind the post from Football Tweet.

The tweet in question lavishes praise on Bayern Munich legend Ribery, deeming him to be one of the greatest players in French history. However, its closing remark has infuriated the Ronaldo fanbase:

"Franck Ribery: one of the greatest players in the history of France, robbed of the 2013 Ballon d'Or."

Cristiano Ronaldo won the Ballon d'Or in 2013 after a remarkable season with Real Madrid. The Portuguese legend bagged 55 goals and 13 assists in 55 games across competitions. He finished as the top scorer in the UEFA Champions League with 12 goals.

However, Ribery didn't even finish second, as Messi beat him to that place. The Frenchman enjoyed a phenomenal campaign that year, scoring 11 goals and providing 23 assists in 43 games across competitions. The Frenchman won the UEFA Champions League with Bayern and the Bundesliga title.

However, the French winger was handed 23.36% of votes finishing third while Ronaldo won the Ballon d'Or with 27.99% of votes. Ribery never won the award during his illustrious career before retiring last October.

Fans have hit out at the tweet for suggesting Ronaldo didn't deserve the award over Ribery. One placed the blame on Messi:

"Messi PR working overtime."

Here's how Twitter reacted to the debatable tweet that seems to take aim at Ronaldo's 2013 win:

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Cristiano Ronaldo wants to end career with more Ballon d'Or awards than Lionel Messi

Ronaldo is a five-time winner of the France Football award.

Cristiano Ronaldo saidin 2019 that he wants to end his career with more Ballon d'Or awards than his longtime rival Messi. The legendary duo were tied at five apiece at the time. He said (via Sky Sports):

"I would love (more), and I think I deserve it. Messi is a fantastic guy, a fantastic player. He's in the history of football - but I think I have to have six or seven or eight to be above him."

Cristiano Ronaldo hasn't won the award since 2017 while Messi has gone on to win two more. Now aged 38, it seems unlikely that Ronaldo will get his hands on the Ballon d'Or again.

Meanwhile, Messi is among the frontrunners to win this year's award, thanks to his 2022 FIFA World Cup win.